Facebook's Testing New 'Keyword Alerts' for Groups

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Facebook looks to be testing a new option to provide alerts for keyword mentions within Facebook groups, which would provide another way for admins to stay on top of relevant discussions within group interactions.

Spotted by Facebook code hacker Jane Manchun Wong, the new option could come in particularly handy for businesses who are looking to use groups to stay in touch with potential customers and opportunities, especially for those within larger groups.

By setting up specific alerts for product or intent-related keywords, admins would be able to ensure they never miss a relevant discussion, while businesses could also work with admins from large, popular groups to set up an alert system to let them know of relevant mentions, which they can tap into.

Of course, that doesn't necessarily provide the green light for the hard sell - it's still a group discussion and those who use such a tool would still need to adhere to the etiquette of social interaction to maximize effectiveness. But it may provide another avenue for social media monitoring, which could become even more relevant as Facebook puts more emphasis on group interaction (and experts predict social engagement is increasingly going to shift to more enclosed groups).

That said, the main purpose of such a tool is likely not brand-related - the objective here is likely to help admins weed out questionable discussions by ensuring that they can stay on top of any mentions which may not necessarily violate platform rules, but may relate to conversations which can quickly turn uncivil. By ensuring they're made aware of any such discussion immediately, admins can keep tabs on the exchanges, and step in as required to better manage their groups.

But there are various opportunities here. There's no official word from Facebook on this feature yet, but we'll keep you updated as we hear.